Ouachita Baptist University will host Brittany Ewart and Anna McCulloch’s senior art exhibit, “Color Through the Eyes of a Designer,” in Mabee Fine Arts Center’s Hammons Art Gallery April 1-10. A reception will be held Wednesday, April 2, from 6-7 p.m. in the gallery. The exhibit is free and open to the public.

The artists said the work in the exhibit focuses on the importance of color in graphic design combined with other elements like line, shape and simplicity to create pieces that are visually pleasing to the eye. In addition to graphic design, the exhibit will also include photography pieces.

Anna McCulloch

Brittany Ewart

“We both have a lot of branding, which will be in the show,” said Ewart, a senior graphic design and mass communications major from Bossier City, La. “For example, I had two different restaurants that I created and came up with the logo, the menus, the business cards, the stationery and the flyers.”

McCulloch, a senior graphic design and mass communications major from Little Rock, Ark., said, “I did a bake shop, and I also redesigned CoverGirl to give it a new look.”

“Its funny because our pieces are really similar except the difference in colors,” said Ewart. “We both do really simple but effective stuff.”

Though both artists do similar work, they each have their own style. Ewart said that she enjoys using typography and geometrics for her pieces, while McCulloch said she draws inspiration from vintage themes. Additionally, Ewart’s pieces focus on bright bold colors, while McCulloch’s pieces focus on soft pastels. Both artists describe their work as “clean and simple.”

“I’m excited for people to come because it’s basically like having our portfolios on the walls,” McCulloch noted. “I think it will be a good opportunity for people to see what we do.”

“I never thought that I would be a graphic design major and have my own senior art show,” Ewart added. “It has been a cool experience and I think it’s definitely an accomplishment to have made it this far.”

Regular gallery hours for the exhibit are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The exhibit is also available during evenings when other School of Fine Arts events are held in Mabee Fine Arts Center. For more information, contact the School of Fine Arts at (870) 245-5129.

Ouachita Baptist University will host Libby Harrington and Molly Ann Turner’s senior art exhibit, “Divergence,” in Verser Gallery from April 4 to 15. The exhibit is free and open to the public.

The show will be a culmination of the students’ work while at Ouachita, allowing Turner and Harrington the opportunity to display the progression and growth they have experienced during their academic career.

A reception will be held April 5 at 4 p.m. in Verser lobby, offering the public an opportunity to interact with the artists while celebrating their creative accomplishments.

Unlike many other senior exhibits that feature students with similar stylistic preferences, Turner and Harrington’s show will highlight the difference between studio art and graphic design.

“It’s called ‘Divergence’ because it is about two students coming in as freshmen both thinking that they had the same idea about what they wanted to do, but then going in two completely different directions,” said Turner. “I think it will be really interesting to see the contrast between how my and Libby’s styles have developed. That is what we want people to notice.”

Turner, a graphic design and mass communications double major from Little Rock, Ark., will emphasize the importance of effective visual communication through design.

“I really liked drawing, so coming in to Ouachita, I thought I wanted to do studio art,” Turner noted. “However, as I began to do communications and graphic design, I realized that my passion was being able to help people communicate things effectively and using my art to do that.”

Harrington, a studio art major with an emphasis in painting, takes a more expressive approach to art.

“It’s an exploration of my own style through portraiture and growth trying to find my own style and what I am trying to accomplish,” said Harrington, a native of Hot Springs, Ark. “It is me pushing myself past what I have been accustomed to; not just relying on talent, but more expressive emphasis.”

Summer Bruch, assistant professor of visual arts at Ouachita, has seen Turner and Harrington’s progression as artists firsthand.

“It is interesting to see how these two girls have really developed in their own ways,” Bruch said. “Molly Anne’s trip to study abroad in Austria really expanded her horizons. She got into printmaking, and I think you will see a lot of that in her show.

“Libby has finally come into her own as a painter and she has really begun honing in on the concept with the content,” Bruch continued. “You are really seeing her personality and what she wants to put into the artwork, and it took until now, so you are really seeing the fruits of her whole experience at OBU.”

Regular gallery hours for the exhibit is 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information, contact the School of Fine Arts at (870) 245-5129.

Ouachita Baptist University’s Division of Music will host three student recitals April 4 in Mabee Fine Arts Center’s McBeth Recital Hall. Sean Jackson and Courtney Stanage will present junior piano recitals at 11 a.m., and Kenderick Scorza will present his sophomore musical theatre recital at 2 p.m. The recitals are free and open to the public.

Jackson is a music composition major from Livingston, La. He has been named to Ouachita’s President’s and Dean’s Lists and is a member of the Carl Goodson Honors Program. He also has placed third in Ouachita’s Virginia Queen Piano Competition.

Stanage is a piano performance major from Hot Springs Village, Ark. She has been named to Ouachita’s Dean’s List and is a member of Chi Rho Phi women’s social club. She also has been named a Friends of Fine Arts Scholar.

Scorza is a musical theatre major from North Little Rock, Ark. He has been a nominee for the Irene Ryan Acting Auditions at the Region Six Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival for his work as Toad in Ouachita’s production of “A Year with Frog and Toad.” He also has been involved in OBU Concert Choir and Kappa Chi men’s social club.

His recital will include Dick Gallagher’s “Laughing Matters” from When Pigs Fly; Irving Berlin’s “You’re Just in Love” from Call Me Madam; Act I, Scene II from Claptrap by Ken Friedman; and “Rich, Famous and Powerful” by David Friedman.

Scorza will be assisted by Cami Willis, a junior musical theatre and church media/production arts double major from Flower Mound, Texas, for “You’re Just in Love” and the scene Claptrap. Stacy Hawking, a sophomore musical theatre major from Sherwood, Ark., served as choreographer for “You’re Just in Love.” John Briggs, adjunct instructor of music, will serve as Scorza’s accompanist for the recital.